Pokemon: Fire and Leaves
by Badshot01
Summary: My first fic. Based off a recent play through of Fire Red & Leaf Green, it retells the story of the games with my own creative spin. Protagonists are OC. New chapter(s) planned for every week. Can be read without much understanding of Pokemon. Now rated M for innuendo, suggestive themes, and safety. Reviews and constructive criticism appreciated. NO hateful bashing please.
1. Introduction

Pokemon Fire and Leaves

* * *

Introduction

It was early one morning in the Kanto region. In a small city called Pallet Town, there rested three ordinary people whose' lives were about to change forever in just a few hours. These peoples' names were Jason, Gary, and Ashley. Jason was sixteen. He was tall at about 6 feet, had brown hair, and a slim figure. He has been a good kid most of his childhood. Unlike most people, he decided he did not want to get his Pokemon license immediately after he turned ten. He had an interest in Pokemon from a much younger age though. He always dreamed of one day actually being able to catch and tame the creatures and grow special bonds with them. Jason also grew up with various Pokemon. Jason's mother kept some as pets. Jason's favorite was the dog Pokemon, Growlithe. In fact, the Growlithe was more attached to Jason than it was to Jason's mother. Now that he was older, he decided that this was a most opportune moment to become a trainer. He thought he had a good edge over any younger, rookie trainers. He was ambitious and friendly. In a few words, he was the perfect trainer.

Gary was Jason's rival. They grew up being neighbors and over time, developed a grudge over each other. Gary was always trying to prove himself to be stronger than Jason. Now that he was also sixteen and learned that Jason was going to get his Pokemon license, he decided to do just the same. Gary was tall but not as tall as Jason. Gary was about 5'10" and also had brown hair. Unlike Jason, he liked to spike his hair. He was always a smug person who was inconsiderate to most people except family.

Ashley was also sixteen. She was the shortest of the three standing at 5'9". She also had long brown hair that she preferred to wear straight. She was a mixed bag during her childhood. One day she was absolutely sweet and other days she put on a totally different personality and became relentlessly brutal and sharp-tongued. She carried this into her teenage years and has seen some trouble because of it. She was very independent so she often left her home to explore the areas around Pallet Town. While outside of the town, she often saw many Pokemon native to the area. Sometimes she would interact with them despite knowing that she could be attacked. However, the wild Pokemon always welcomed her into their habitat. They were like a family due to the fact that the bond that she had with her parents was not very strong. Ashley wanted to see the world. She figured that if a ten year old was old enough to explore this world alone, sixteen was plenty old enough. She also figured that she needed Pokemon to help her. So why not receive her license and first Pokemon and explore the world?

Pallet Town was small but it was home to the leading Pokemon professor, Professor Oak. Professor Oak studies the bonds between Pokemon and humans and Pokemon in general. Professor Oak was old and little eccentric but he was kind nonetheless. He also happened to be Gary's grandfather. Every once in a while, Professor Oak offers three Pokemon to new trainers and they are allowed to choose one. It is first come, first served and Jason, Gary, and Ashley all want a Pokemon before anybody else can get to the lab.

Jason watched a program hosted by the Professor himself the night before. The professor showcased each of the three Pokemon available. The first one was Bulbasaur. It looked like a tiny green dinosaur with a bulb growing on its back. He explained that Bulbasaur was a grass and poison hybrid type and was easy to raise. He also said that it will grow to be able to take a lot of abuse in battle and be able to attack indirectly very well.

The next Pokemon was Squirtle. It looked like a small blue turtle. The Professor said it was a water type that was worth raising. He also said that it would grow to be a well-rounded choice in battle.

The last Pokemon was Charmander. It looked like an orange lizard with a flame emanating from its tail. Jason was immediately interested when this Pokemon was revealed but, the professor said it needed to be raised patiently. After he was told this, Jason began to have second thoughts. Oak said that this Fire type would grow to be a fast and fierce attacker both directly and indirectly. However it could be easily outclassed defensively if its speed is not taken advantage of.

After the professor finished showcasing the Pokemon, he began to give some tips to beginning trainers such as Jason. Once the program was finished Jason went to bed. It was still early but he wanted to be the first one there. Jason slept on the decision he had to make. Just as he was falling asleep, he made up his mind. Gary didn't bother watching the program. He would just pick whatever had the type advantage in a battle against Jason's first Pokemon. Ashley watched the program, but they were all too good for her to choose one. She decided to let fate be the deciding factor and she would wait for the other two to be picked before taking the last one. Ashley and Gary went to bed, eager for the next day…


	2. Chapter 1: The Dawn of a Journey

Chapter 1: The Dawn of a Journey

Jason woke up and shot straight out of bed. He rushed over to his wardrobe and changed into a black shirt and blue jeans. He put on his most comfortable pair of running shoes, put on simple red and white Pokemon League hat, grabbed his new backpack, and ran down the stairs of his home and out the front door almost forgetting to shut it behind him. The sun was almost completely over the hills that surround Pallet Town. Jason figured he was going to be there right when the lab opened, but to his horror, he saw Gary and another stranger in front of the lab.

"What took ya so long loser?" Gary remarked. "Oh shut up…" Jason replied. While waiting for the professor, Jason took a look at the stranger. Her arms were crossed and she was staring at the ground. She appeared to be thinking about something. She was wearing a Blue sleeveless shirt and a red skirt. Jason thought about introducing himself and decided it was safe to so he said hello to her. She didn't budge. Jason asked if she was OK. She came to her senses and turned to Jason and said "Excuse me?" "I asked if you were OK," Jason said. "Oh yes. I'm good." she said nodding. "What's your name?" Jason asked. "Call me Ashley," she said smiling. "Hello. It's nice to meet you," Jason replied. "I am Jason," Jason said sticking out his hand. Ashley looked down at it and put out her hand to shake his. "Yes, it is nice to meet someone new," "So why are you here?" Jason asked. "I want a Pokemon because I dream of one day becoming the best of the best. I also wish to bond with and learn more about these creatures," "Oh, that's a deep goal. I just want to travel and experience what lies outside of this boring town," Ashley sighed. "So… which Pokemon were you gonna pick?" asked Jason. He was hoping it was not going to be what he wanted. "I'm gonna let you two pick first. There all too good for me to choose one," Ashley said.

Jason silently breathed a sigh of relief. At last, the professor could be seen walking toward the lab. All of the teens stood up from the ground and intently watched the professor take his time. When he finally reached the front door to the lab he saw the teens and made a remark about how punctual they all were. As soon as the door was opened Gary shoved his way in. The professor followed behind him. Jason held the door for Ashley. "Thank-you," she said politely. "Of course," Jason said. Jason followed Ashley into the lab.

The professor reached for his lab coat hanging near the door and walked over to a table putting the coat on at the same time. "Now then," Oak said "Good morning everyone! You must be the fresh batch of trainers! I recognize some of you. Gary… Jason… You! Do you mind telling me about yourself? Now are you boy or girl?" "Umm… a girl?" Ashley said perplexed. "Right then now what is your name?" "Ashley…" She said still confused. "This is my grandson. He has been your rival since you were both babies. Err… What was his name now?" Jason stopped him before Ashley could react. "Professor, he is MY rival," "Oh yes. Sorry, I must be getting senile in my old age!"

He chuckled. "Now then, why don't you go ahead and choose first Ashley?" "Hey Gramps! No fair!" Gary exclaimed. "Be patient Gary you can have one too," "Actually Please let Gary or Jason pick first," Ashley said. "Oh? OK. Jason you pick first!" "Alright! I pick-," Gary began to giggle. "Actually, why don't you pick first Gary?" "Ladies first!" he replied and burst out laughing. "Hey! It doesn't matter who you pick! I'll clobber you no matter what!" Jason shot back. "Yeah? After you choose lets battle and see!" "Fine! I pick Charmander!" Jason carefully picked up the device it was being held in called a poke ball and opened it. A flash of red light enveloped the lab and before everyone's eyes, a Charmander stood with a smile on his face staring at Jason.

"Oh! I love it!" Jason cried dropping to his knees to give the creature a hug. It gave a cry of glee and snuggled up to Jason as he was hugging it. Gary snorted behind him and Ashley gave a little smile. "Alright! I choose this one!" Another flash of red light and Squirtle appeared before Gary. Ashley said "OK! Bulbasaur is mine!" One last red flash and Bulbasaur sat before Ashley. She kneeled down to pet her new companion and it smiled back at her.

"Now, about that battle," Gary said giving Jason a determined look. "Sure! You're on!" Jason exclaimed. Jason stood up and told Charmander to get ready. Gary did the same with his Squirtle. For a moment it was silent. Then, Ashley broke the silence by telling them to hurry up and start. Jason knew from research that the moves a Charmander knew at this point would be only scratch and growl. However, what Oak had said on the program he watched last night was true. There was no way scratching the Squirtle would work because of its shell. Jason knew this was a losing battle and he did not want his Pokemon to suffer so he forfeited the match before it started.

Gary considered this a great victory began to gloat. Everyone withdrew their new companions and thanked Professor Oak and left the lab. Ashley pulled Jason aside when Gary was out of sight and began to scold Jason for just giving up. "If you have dreams of becoming the best, then why did you just give up?!" "I did not want my Charmander to suffer that's all," Ashley was getting brutal with him "You need to understand that reaching the top will require you and your Pokemon to suffer at least a little bit. You should also place more faith in them. Take care of them and they will take care of you," "How do you know this?" Ashley sighed and sat down on a bench. Jason followed after her. "I have to tell you a story…"


	3. Chapter 2: Tales of the Past

Chapter 2: Tales of the Past

Ashley began to think about what happened to her two years ago. _"While I was out on my own one day, I decided to visit my favorite spot outside of town. In this spot, I have met and befriended many Pokemon. They do not attack me whenever I visit their habitat. One day, I decided to climb one of the tallest trees in that area. I climbed all the way up to the top. I knew that if I happened to fall it would cost me greatly._

_I was having a good time interacting with the Pokemon that followed me up the tree but then I saw the most glorious sight. It looked like a giant blue phoenix and it shimmered brightly as it flew across the sky. I completely forgot that I was in the tree and I slipped and lost my balance. I managed to grip the branch I was sitting on but I was not strong enough to pull myself back up._

_I knew that I would eventually lose my grip and fall. Some Pidgey, who look like extremely small bird Pokemon, began to worry for my safety but what could they do? I was much too heavy for even a group of Pidgey to rescue me. I was beginning to lose faith in the small creatures when they began to cry out loudly. At the time I had no idea what it was but just I was about to lose my grip, A much bigger bird appeared on the horizon. I recognized it as a Pidgeot, The fully evolved form of Pidgey._

_Then, I could not hold on any longer and I fell. Seeing this, the Pidgeot flapped with all its might to speed up. I fell for about three seconds before I closed my eyes and waited for the end. Just them I felt myself land on a firm surface and a gust of wind carrying me up. I opened my eyes to see that the Pidgeot had caught me._

_I squealed in relief and held on tightly. It carried me all the way down to the base of the tree with the Pidgey following it. It landed with a gentle bump and it put its wings in a resting position, allowing me to step off. I did so and I turned to thank it. That is when I noticed this particular Pidgeot was a little different from the rest. The colors of its tail feathers were shades of yellow instead of red. After I said thank-you, it cooed in response and flew away._

Because I took care of the Pidgey before this event, they took care of me by calling a grown relative to rescue me. I should not have lost faith in them because a Pokemon can do amazing things when they want to do something for their master. Your Charmander could have surprised you if you just let the battle play out," Jason pulled out the poke ball holding Charmander.

"Charmander…" Jason mumbled. "Well, I hope we can see each other again! I got a world to explore! Keep what I said in mind!" Ashley said picking up her handbag. She began to walk away. "Wait…" Jason blurted out. "Please won't you travel with me?" "What?" Ashley said spinning around. "We can share our journey, our goals, and learn from each other, and… Just, please. Will you accompany me on my journey?" Jason asked again. "Well… I was not planning on becoming a real big trainer but, since it's you asking, I'll do it," she said smiling. "I will try not to be too much of a burden on you," Ashley said. "Are you kidding? Nothing's gonna keep us back!" Jason was beaming and now as he grabbed Ashley's hand began to run around with her struggling to keep up. Jason stopped after a small amount of time and looked deep into Ashley's blue eyes.

"Trust me, we can make it to the top together. With each other's help, we can overcome any obstacle and still enjoy ourselves," Ashley gave a nod in response with a new goal in mind: to help Jason become the best of the best while still trying to become a strong trainer herself.


	4. Chapter 3: To Viridian City and Back

Chapter 3: To Viridian City and Back

Jason and Ashley walked to Jason's house were Jason said good-bye to his mother and Growlithe the orange fire dog. Jason's mother implored him to take Growlithe with him but Jason had to explain he had no extra poke balls. At the moment, he was incapable of carrying anymore Pokemon. He also introduced Ashley to her mother. Jason's mother cracked a joke about how it was nice Jason made a friend rather than a rival. Jason was a little peeved that his mother was embarrassing him like this but he silently signaled his mother to stop. She quickly got the signal and let them go on their way.

She began to tear up as she saw her son with Ashley fading into the distance. Growlithe dashed out in front of Jason's mother and let out a howl hoping it would get Jason to turn back. Jason heard his pet but he knew not to turn back because it would give the poor animal a sense of false hope. "Oh… Poor thing," Ashley said quietly. "If I happen to be back in the area with poke balls, I will let it join us," Jason steadily replied. They went over to Gary's house so they could say goodbye to Daisy, Gary's little sister. She gave them a map of the Kanto region as a gift. They thanked her and left for route 1, a grassy path north of Pallet town.

"This is close to where I fell out of that tree." Ashley said while they were walking. Along the route they saw Pidgey and purple rodent-like creatures, Rattata. They approached the duo occasionally but they never attacked them because they recognized Ashley. Along the way they stopped to talk with a few people. One of the people they talked to was somebody who worked at the poke mart at Viridian City. He explained to them that they could purchase supplies and other helpful items there and he gave them both a potion as a free sample.

"A potion is used to heal your Pokemon if they get hurt. Keep in mind that these potions are not very potent so they only work for minor wounds," They thanked the man and continued on their way. They were enjoying the walk. It was a bright sunny day with no clouds in the sky and the nature around them was in full swing. After about 10 more minutes of walking they reached Viridian City. Viridian was a small town with major landmarks being the trainer school and the Viridian City Pokemon gym. Jason and Ashley's first order of business was to purchase supplies at the poke mart.

They walked to the shopping district and entered the poke mart. Almost as soon as they walked in, the cashier turned and asked Jason if he knew Professor Oak. "Yes. In fact, I am from Pallet Town," Jason responded. "That's good. Could you do me a favor and deliver this to Professor Oak? Our regular courier is out sick for the week," "Sure I can," Jason said taking Oak's parcel and placing it in his backpack. "Thank you!" The cashier called out to them as they left the store. "Well, we don't have to deliver it to him right away," Ashley said. "We can explore this town a little bit more before we go back," "Yeah. Let's do that," Jason replied. They walked around the town for a while. They saw the Pokemon center, a place for healing weak or sick Pokemon. They also saw a few houses and the school. They decided to go inside the school and see what was being taught.

The lesson of the day was status problems. The teacher was up front and was speaking. "Status problems are conditions that hinder a Pokemon's performance in battle. There are five in total. Sleeping, paralysis, poisoning, burns, and freezing are the five status problems. If the Pokemon is sleeping or frozen, they are helplessly immobile until they wake up or thaw out. Rather than waiting for that to happen, you can use medicine to cure them immediately. Pokemon centers are also effective. Pokemon of the ice type CAN'T become frozen. Poisoning and burns slowly do damage to Pokemon suffering from the problem. Both linger after a battle but burns are harmless outside of a battle. Poisoning will slowly damage the Pokemon until it faints. Inside of a battle however, the Pokemon's attack power will be decreased when they are burned. To treat these problems, use medicine or go to a Pokemon center. Poison type Pokemon CAN'T become poisoned. Fire types CAN'T be burned. And lastly there is paralysis. Paralysis is a condition that will linger after a battle, but is harmless inside and outside of battle. In battle however, paralyzed Pokemon become less likely to successfully attack and their speed is sharply reduced. To cure this, use medicine or a Pokemon center. That is all. Dismissed!"

The small class gathered their things and began to walk out of the building. "Alright let's go to the-," Ashley turned around to see Jason staring at the blackboard. "Ugh… We just got done hearing about this…," Ashley groaned. After about three minutes of carefully reading the lesson on the board, Jason stood up and said "OK! We can leave now!" "About time…," Ashley grunted. They left the building and headed for route 1.

The trip back to Pallet Town did not take as long due to the fact that going southbound on route 1 was downhill. Once they saw the lab in the distance they began to walk faster to deliver Oak's parcel in a timely manner. They opened the door to the lab and were met with the greetings of Oak and a few of his aides.

"This is for you," said Jason as he put his backpack on the floor to open it and pull out the parcel. As soon as the professor was given the parcel, he thanked them both for delivering it to him. At that moment, Gary barged in and marched up to his grandfather. "Yeah, Gramps? What did you call me for?" "Hmmm…" The professor pondered for a moment trying to remember what he was going to say. "Oh yes! Jason, Gary, Ashley, I have a favor to ask of all of you," Professor Oak ambled over to a nearby desk and picked up three red devices. He then shuffled back to where the teens were standing.

"This piece of technology is the Pokedex. It records data on Pokemon that you have seen or caught. It can also send voice messages to others that have a Pokedex as long as you have their registration number," He handed them the devices. "Take these also," He handed the group five poke balls each. "I have spent my whole life studying Pokemon. I would go out and do this myself but I am much too old for the job now… To make a complete guide on all the Pokemon in the world… That was my dream!" The teens thanked him and they left. The real journey was about to begin…


	5. Chapter 4: First Companions

Chapter 4: First Companions

Jason and Ashley walked back to Jason's house so they could bring Growlithe with them. They opened the door and walked in. Jason was greeted by his mother and pet. Ashley said hello again to both his mother and Growlithe. Jason said he acquired some poke balls from the professor and he could take Growlithe with him now. "That's fantastic news!" his mother said. "Because Growlithe is so attached to you, you can just open up a poke ball and Growlithe would go right in without a fight!" "Yeah," Said Jason while bending down in front of an excited Growlithe. "What do you say, Buddy?" He asked Growlithe. It yapped in response.

Jason laid a poke ball on the floor and pressed the center button to open it. With a flash of red light, Growlithe shrunk into a small glow and zipped into the poke ball. It quickly sealed shut and began to wiggle and hum in high pitched tones. Once... Twice… Thrice… Four times… Five Times… A clicking sound and a low pitched echo confirmed that Growlithe was safely caught. Jason smiled and picked up the ball.

"Welcome to the team," he said putting the ball in his pocket. He then pulled out his Pokedex to read about Growlithe. "Scan: Growlithe" Jason said in a clear voice. **"Scanning…"** The Pokedex said back to him in a raspy, robotic male voice. **"Scanning complete… Growlithe: the puppy Pokemon. Very friendly and faithful to people. It will try to repel enemies by barking and biting,"** "That's a cool device!" Jason's mother said to her son. "What is it?" She asked. "Oh, this? It is a Pokedex. It's a digital encyclopedia of sorts for Pokemon data," He replied back to her. He also showed her the device. "Right now, I only have data on Charmander and Growlithe," Jason said. "Professor Oak wanted us to complete this while on our journey," Ashley said to his mother.

After a little more discussion with Jason's mother, she glanced at a clock on the wall and said "Oh my! I took too much of your time. You two should get on your way now," She said goodbye to them one last time and led them outside. They headed straight for route 1 after they left.

"Alright, we should catch some of these," Jason said pointing to the wildlife. "Watch me," Ashley said walking up to one of the Rattata watching them. It circled around her for a few moments, inspecting her, and then nuzzled up to her leg after it recognized her. Ashley kneeled down close to the rodent and began to murmur something to it that was incoherent to Jason. After she finished, she pulled out a poke ball and set it on the ground and opened it. In a red flash, Rattata was inside the ball and it began the process Jason's ball went through when capturing Growlithe. After a few tense moments, the ball clicked and a low echo resonated through the area close to them. Rattata was caught.

She picked up the ball smiled and put in her handbag. Then, she pulled out her Pokedex and said "Scan: Rattata," **"Scanning…"** It said back to her in a less raspy, clearer, female voice. "Hey how did you do that?" Jason asked her. "What?" she replied," "Change the voice on your Pokedex," Jason said. "I was customizing it while we were talking with your mother," She said. "You can do it too once you find the 'settings' option in y-," **"Scanning complete"** The Pokedex interrupted. **"Rattata: the mouse Pokemon. Its fangs are long and very sharp. They grow continuously, so it gnaws on hard things to whittle them down,"** "Cool," Jason said. "Anyways, it is in the 'settings' option in your device," Ashley finished. They continued to go northbound on route 1 and they soon saw a Pidgey.

"Can I do the same thing you did with that Rattata?" Jason asked Ashley. "Probably not. They are familiar with me but not necessarily you," Jason sighed. "Alright, this one's mine!" Jason said pulling two poke balls from his bag. "Go! Charmander!" He cried as he threw the ball in front of him. The ball opened in midair and Charmander materialized from a red streak of light. This caught the Pidgey's attention and it turned to face its opponent. "Charmander, use scratch!" The Charmander dashed up to the bird and scratched it as it was told. It then jumped back to avoid a counter attack. The Pidgey fluttered off the ground after realizing what happened and charged Charmander. It slammed right into its belly and Charmander went tumbling back. It hoped up from the ground eagerly waiting for its next command. "Scratch it again!" Jason exclaimed. Charmander repeated the command it was given a moment ago and scratched the enemy creature again but with more force.

The Pidgey was hit and was lying on the ground trying to get up. "Now is your chance!" Jason heard Ashley shout behind him. Jason took the other poke ball he had and tossed it at the Pidgey. It hit the creature and it fell over again. The poke ball opened up and Pidgey disappeared inside. It began to rattle. Jason watched intensely while it did this. After rattling a few times a click and echo could be heard and Pidgey was caught. ** "Pidgey: the tiny bird Pokemon. A common sight in forests and woods. It flaps its wings at ground level to kick up blinding sand,"** Jason's Pokedex said from Jason's pants belt. "I set mine to automatically record data once a Pokemon is caught," He said to Ashley, pointing at his belt "That's convenient. I will have to do that too," She said back to him.

Jason picked up Pidgey's poke ball and put it in his backpack. "Let's get going," Ashley said to Jason. They continued north until they reached Viridian City again. They decided to go to the Pokemon center and heal Pidgey of its wounds. Jason walked up to the front counter. "Welcome to the Viridian City Pokemon center! I am Nurse Joy and I will gladly service your Pokemon," said the nurse working there. "I need you to heal my Pidgey. I had weakened it so that I could catch it," Jason said to Nurse Joy "Of course, right away!" She said to Jason. Jason took out Pidgey's poke ball and gave it to Nurse Joy. She grabbed it from his hand and went into a back room that Jason guessed was the infirmary. Jason was asked to wait in the sick bay and Ashley was asked to wait in the waiting room.

Jason could see into a few rooms. He saw a few Pokemon resting peacefully in beds. He wondered how his new Pidgey was doing. Ashley was a little bored in the waiting room but she began to have a conversation with a scientist. She learned that there are 150 Pokemon altogether. "Thank-you" she said and turned around to sit in a chair. After Jason waited about 10 more minutes, the nurse came out with a poke ball in her hand and a Pidgey resting on her shoulder "Go on," she whispered to the Pidgey. It cooed and fluttered over to Jason's outstretched arm. It landed and gently gripped his arm with its talons. "Here is its poke ball," Nurse Joy said to Jason, handing him the poke ball. "Thank-you so much," Jason said. "We hope to see you again!" Joy replied.

Jason stepped out into the waiting room with the bird still on his arm. He saw Ashley and walked over to her. "We can go now," He said. "Wait! Before we go, do you want to trade Pokemon?" Ashley asked Jason. "What?" "You know, trade our Pokemon? They grow faster in trades and become stronger. We will also register the others data in our dex," "That sounds like a great idea! Pidgey for Rattata right?" "Right," She said.

They walked over to the trade station in the corner of the waiting room. "Pidgey, return," Jason said taking out its ball and zapping it with the red laser. It opened and Pidgey disappeared. They each went over to one of the monitors and requested a trade with each other. They successfully connected and put their balls inside the tubes that popped out next to the monitors. With a few taps of the keyboard the tubes retracted back into the machine and a low droning sound could be heard. After a few seconds the tubes forcefully popped out the sides again and they each took their new Pokemon from the tube. They put them in their bags and set out for the Viridian City Pokemon gym.

There was an elderly man sitting near a window that looked into the gym. Jason tried the doors but they were locked. "What gives?" Ashley asked. "This gym is always closed. Nobody knows who the real leader is. Not even I who has lived here for my whole life," The old man said to them. "Just follow the routes of the region in numerical order and you should circle back to this gym. Who knows if the leader will be back by then but if he or she is, then you can challenge him or her," They both thanked the elderly man and headed for route 2…


	6. Chapter 5: Second Chance

Chapter 5: Second Chance

After they walked away from the Pokemon gym, they began to head for route 2 a path north of Viridian City that had similar terrain to route 1. The sun was beginning to dip low in the sky and shades of orange covered the city and the skyline. When they neared the entrance to route 22, a rocky path west of Viridian City, Gary seemed to appear from nowhere and rushed up to meet Jason. "Yo, loser!" he shouted when he was sure they could hear him. They turned with aggravated expressions to face him. "Where ya headed?" He asked them with a smug look on his face.

"Stay out of our business you-," "Ashley! Please… There is no need to be rude to him no matter how rude he may be to us," Jason broke in. Ashley crossed her arms and turned around and began to debate whether or not she should flip Gary off. "I would rather not tell you," Jason said calmly. "Well, if you were off to the Pokemon League, forget about it! There is too much security to sneak by. You need League badges if you want to get through." "What are those?" Jason asked. "WOOOOOW!" Gary said in extreme exaggeration. "How slow are you?" Gary asked. Ashley was biting her lip, trying not to tell off Gary.

"Those are the badges you get when you defeat gym leaders. There are eight leaders in all. After that, you go to the Indigo Plateau and challenge the Elite Four of the Pokemon League. Only when you become the champion and enter the Hall of Fame you can start to call yourself the best of the best. By the way, how about another battle? Unless you're afraid to lose!" "I can take you on now," Jason said. "Yeah!" screamed Ashley. "He'll kick you're a-," They both turned to look at her. "Oooopsss…" she said after realizing what she was about to say.

"Go, Growlithe!" Jason said, throwing its ball "Go Pidgey!" Gary cried as he threw out his Pidgey. They both appeared and stood in battle-ready positions. "Growlithe, chomp him with a bite attack!" The dog rushed up to the Pidgey with its mouth open. Once closer it pounced on the Pidgey and bit into it. It snarled it up for a few seconds before it escaped from the dog's grasp. "Pidgey, whip up a gust attack!" Gary shouted. The Pidgey began to flap its wings and soon enough, a powerful wind swept Growlithe off its feet and it came back down with a "THUNK!" as it hit the ground. The dog rolled over back on its feet and awaited the next command.

"Alright, spit some flames with an ember attack!" Jason commanded. Growlithe puffed in some air and breathed out barrages of tiny fireballs. Pidgey flew upwards and attempted to dodge the onslaught but was blasted by the third barrage. It fell from the sky. "Pidgey, return!" Gary called as he took its poke ball and withdrew it before it hit the ground. Ashley was cheering for Jason. "Go, Squirtle!" Gary shouted as he sent out his second and last Pokemon. It appeared and took a ready stance. "Growlithe, come back!" Jason called out to it as he withdrew it. "Go, Rattata!" Rattata appeared and was ready.

"Squirtle, use withdraw!" With that, Squirtle retracted its limbs into its shell. "Rattata, use focus energy!" Rattata closed its eyes and began to get pumped. "Rattata, use quick attack!" "Squirtle, tack-!" Before he could even finish his sentence Gary's Squirtle was smashed into with lighting quick speed. Squirtle flew far back and skidded against the ground "How did you do that with just a quick attack?!" "Focus energy," Jason simply said. "Alright Rattata, finish it off with a bite!" It ran up to the Squirtle and gave a hardy chomp into the Squirtle's shell. When Squirtle's head finally popped out of its shell, it fainted. "Awww! You just lucked out!" Gary whined as he gave Jason the prize money of 400 poke dollars.

"DANG! I'll just have to find stronger Pokemon!" His glance shifted over to Ashley. "Hey toots. Why you traveling with this dork anyways?" "Back off!" she spat back at him. "Whoa, easy! I'm just having a conversation with you. How about you give me your registration number and we can chat it up real nice…," "In your dreams, creep!" She shouted at him. "Hey how about traveling with me?" Gary's face turned into a menacing grin. "I'll show ya REAL good time, baby," "You sleaze!" She screamed at the top of her lungs and attracting the attention of bystanders. "I am gonna make y-!," "Ashley!" Jason said grabbing her by the shoulders. Ashley began to kick and writhe so she could get over to Gary and slap him silly. "What he said was not OK and he deserves punishment for verbally violating you but there is no need to stoop to violence!" "Let me go!" She hissed "I'm gonna destroy him!" "Whatever," Gary said. "Smell ya later!" and he walked away.

Jason dragged her to the foot of route 2. "Fine. I will let him live today," "Will you stop with all the killing stuff?!" Jason screamed at her. "It is kinda morbid," "Sure, whatever," She said. "What's next anyways?" "After about 10 minutes, we should reach the Viridian Forest" "F-f-forest?!" Ashley spluttered out. "Yeah. What's wrong?" "I have hylophobia," she said extremely fast. "Huh?" "A fear of forests," she said just a fast as before. "Really... Hmmm… Well you can take my hand once we get there. I will make sure we see the other side of the forest. That is my promise," Jason said earnestly to Ashley. Night was beginning to fall. After a hike as long as Jason had predicted, they reached the entrance to the Viridian forest…


	7. Chapter 6: The Promise is Tested

Chapter 6: The Promise is Tested

The duo passed through the route 2 checkpoint without problems. When they reached door that led into the forest Jason turned to see Ashley desperately clinging to his arm. She was shivering. "Are you cold?" he asked her. She did not respond. She just stared ahead with a worried expression on her face. "OK. Here we go," Jason said as he led Ashley through the door and out into the forest

It was almost pitch-black inside. The only thing that could help Jason see was the light from the full moon. Ashley sniffled like she was crying. When he noticed this he took his other free hand held her arms. Jason was praying that the wildlife would not attack them because if it did, he would have to fight them off without the help of his Pokemon. He heard the cries of various Pokemon but they sounded fairly distant. Other than the cries of faraway Pokemon, it was deathly quiet.

After about five minutes of aimlessly wandering, Jason realized it would be smarter to camp rather than continue. He whispered to Ashley: "You need to let go of me for a moment so I can unpack my sleeping bag," Ashley whimpered and reluctantly let go of the arm she was so tightly clinging to. She felt awful. She was tired and her legs were weak from fear. If she did not sit down, she would surely fall over. Jason could sense this and fished a small flashlight from his bag. "Here, use this to find a stump nearby to sit on. Try not to keep it on for prolonged periods of time. I have a limited supply of batteries and I do not want any night dwellers to know of our position," he handed it to Ashley and she grabbed it with a shaky hand. "Be careful not to drop it either. It is fragile," She gave a shaky nod in response.

She feebly scooted around flashing the light to find a stump. She was breathing shallowly and just about when she was going to faint she found a stump a few feet away from where Jason was setting up. _"He is so kind,"_ she said to herself. _"Now that I am traveling with him, I cannot imagine traveling without him. So much more concerned about me than him… Strong and confident… He is much better than Gary that is for sure. He wants to travel with me so we can support each other. Unlike Gary who all he wants to do is have his way with me. Jason truly will be the best of the best if continues strong like this,"_ While she was thinking of the kindness Jason has shown her and the protection he offered tears began to drip from her eyes.

"Pssst! Come here!" Jason whispered out to her. Feeling much better, she stood up and scooted back to Jason. "OK, I am ready. How about you?" "…" After a rather long moment of silence, she breathed "I don't have a sleeping bag…" in a barely audible volume. "Oh… Well… Unless you would rather sleep on the grass you can use my bag and I will just sleep on the grass instead," Jason suggested. "Oh, that's so sweet of you but I can't rob you of a good night's sleep. You deserve it but… I don't want to sleep on the grass either so… Is this bag big enough to hold two people?" Ashley asked him "Huh? W-w-w-well, umm… Yeah, but… I want you to have a nice amount of room and ah-," "We can sleep in the bag together. I do not mind. I feel at ease with you so close to me." Jason's stomach dropped "You really don't mind?" Jason asked blushing madly. "No," She simply said with a smile and her beautiful eyes shimmering in the moonlight. "Well, I need to change. Don't look please," Ashley gently said to Jason. "Oh-no," Jason said out loud. "What?" Ashley asked him. "I did not anticipate traveling with someone so I did not bring any sleeping clothes. I have to wear only my underwear. You don't care do you?" "Nah. I'm cool with anything as long as you wear something,"

She tip-toed behind a bush and began to change out of her casual clothes. Jason assumed she was occupied so he stripped down to his underwear which to his dismay was one of his tighter pairs. After a few moments, Ashley emerged from the bushes she was changing behind with a nightgown on. Seeing her in this light with what she was wearing, Jason couldn't help but feel tingly. She was the most beautiful thing in the world to Jason right now. He vainly attempted to hide his body's reaction. She giggled when she noticed this. After realizing what she was giggling at Jason turned redder than a ripe pomeg berry.

"Aww… Don't be embarrassed," she purred "Boys can't help themselves sometimes. Even someone as pure as you," Jason was struggling to swallow "Yeah…," he said hoarsely. They climbed into the sleeping bag together and Jason stared up at the sky trying to look at anything but Ashley. "Sure is beautiful," he whispered out loud. "Mmmm…" Ashley mumbled and turned to look at the sky. "Yeah…," she said half asleep. Jason put his arm around Ashley to help her take her mind off her phobia. It brought great comfort to Ashley but he soon let go and moved away so he could fall asleep.

Once she was sure he was asleep, she scooted closer to him and lifted herself for a moment so that she could deliver a gentle kiss to his lips. "Good night," She said in a sweet, soft voice. She lowered herself back down and snuggled next to him for comfort. As she was drifting off, she could still hear his comforting voice and feel his protective touch.

Jason awoke later in the night. He noticed Ashley holding on to him closely and he could feel her heart beat on his body. It was slow and at rest. Jason smiled and closed his eyes to sleep once again…

Jason was the first to awaken the next day. He found Ashley still snuggled close to him. He made sure nobody else was around, and then he carefully climbed out of the sleeping bag without disturbing Ashley and put on the clothes he was wearing the day before. Only in complete privacy would he change his underwear.

He was going to make breakfast but he needed supplies from the forest. He realized that if he was going to leave Ashley, she needed some form of protection. He picked up his bag and fished out Growlithe's ball. He opened it so Growlithe could come out. He appeared and sat in front of Jason. "I need you to watch over Ashley for me," He said pointing to the sleeping girl. It sneezed in response, walked over to Ashley, and sat down next to her. It was sniffing the air searching for threats. "Good boy," Jason whispered over to the dog. Jason zipped up his bag and slung it over his shoulders. Then he set off in search of water and a stirring stick so he could make pancakes with the mix he packed at home.

He came back about a half-hour later. Growlithe was now lying down and Ashley was holding the dog. She was still soundly sleeping. Jason smiled and set down his bag. He took out the pancake mix he had and a liquid measuring cup. He was going to make six of them. He poured the mix into the cup and took out the water he collected. He added that to the mix and picked up his stirring stick. He knew that he had to strip the stick so it would be clean to stir with. He thought for a moment about how to do it. He then remembered that he had a Rattata and he could have it nibble the stick clean.

He took out its ball and opened it. It appeared and stood in front of Jason. "Here," he whispered giving it the stick. "Chew that clean please," he commanded. The rodent was finished in less than ten seconds. "Thank-you," he said and withdrew Rattata. He began to stir the mixture in the cup and after a few minutes, it was a perfectly runny liquid. He pulled a small pan and spatula out of his backpack. He remembered he needed heat to cook them on. He thought for a moment and then remembered that Charmander has a perfectly hot flame burning on its tail.

Jason found the ball from his backpack and opened it. He waited for Charmander to appear and he asked it to sit still and concentrate its energy in its tail flame. It did as it was told. Jason poured the batter into his pan and held it over the fire. At this moment, Ashley began to stir and her eyelids slowly opened to reveal her clear blue eyes. She noticed Growlithe next to her and began to stroke the puppy's head. The next thing she noticed was Jason sitting on a stump cooking something over Charmander's tail flame. Jason turned to look at her and noticed she was awake.

"Good Morning. How did you sleep?" he asked. "Wonderfully," she said to him. "That's good. I'm making breakfast for us," "What are you making?" she asked. "Pancakes," He simply said. After a period of silence, Ashley climbed out of the sleeping bag and stretched. "I need to change again," She said while stretching. "Of course," Jason replied, trying his hardest not to stare. She went behind the same bushes and came back wearing the same shirt and skirt from when they first met. She folded her gown and put it back in her handbag. Then she walked over to the stump Jason was sitting on and sat next to him.

She grabbed his free hand and leaned against him and watched the clouds roll across the sky. She felt as if she could fall asleep again right next to him. Jason broke her grip so he could get a paper plate from his backpack. He pulled one out and set the first completed pancake on it and handed it to Ashley.

"Sorry no butter… Or syrup… Or forks…," Jason said dejectedly. "I don't care. It was very thoughtful of you to make breakfast for us," Ashley said to him picking up her food with her hands. "Besides, it's delicious! Even without butter or syrup!" she said excitedly. "You really think so?" "Yeah!" I want more!" "Sure! Give me a few minutes," he said, glad that she loved his food. In a short time, he cooked all six pancakes and served two more to Ashley and three to himself. He withdrew Charmander once he was done serving.

They sat in the sun and enjoyed their food together. While they were eating, Growlithe perked up its head and sniffed the air. It caught the scent of the food and walked up to Jason. Once the dog was in front of him, it sat down and began to pant and wag its tail. It was staring at Jason as he was putting his food in his mouth. Jason noticed his dog and began to stare back at him. Ashley giggled at how cute of a scene this was. After Growlithe sneezed a multitude of times, Jason said "OK, you win," and tossed him a piece of pancake. It caught it in mid-air and chomped on it a few times before swallowing. Jason then withdrew the dog so he could finish the rest of his meal.

When they finished, Jason sent out Charmander to burn the plates away. It did as it was told and breathed fire upon the plates. Jason withdrew Charmander when it was done and turned to Ashley. "We should get going. Here," Jason said sticking out his hand for Ashley to grasp. She gripped his hand and followed let him lead her through the forest. "We should also look for Pokemon native to here." Jason said. He had Charmander's ball at the ready. After following a dirt path for about five minutes, they saw a Caterpie, a tiny green caterpillar-like Pokemon.

"I got this," Jason said letting go of Ashley and pulling an empty poke ball from his bag. "Caterpie, your mine!" Jason shouted as he threw the ball at it. It turned around in surprise and was hit right in the head. It disappeared into the ball and the ball began to wiggle. After wiggling five times and echoing, Caterpie was caught. "Yes!" Jason ran over to the ball and picked it up. He put it in his bag. "**Caterpie: the worm Pokemon. Its short feet are tipped with suction pads that enable it to tirelessly climb slopes and walls,"**

"I learned you can stream data over to other pokedexes. You want to try?" "Yeah. After all, we need to complete both our pokedexes. I need Caterpie's data, and Growlithe's data," Ashley said. "Sure thing," he said beginning the data transfer process. **"Transfer complete"** both of their pokedexes said in unison to confirm it was done. Jason took Ashley's hand again and they continued down the path. They walked for about 10 more minutes before seeing a Weedle, a tiny orange caterpillar.

"I want this one," Ashley said digging a ball from her handbag. She threw it at the bug and the process was identical to Jason catching his Caterpie. **"Weedle: the hairy bug Pokemon. Often found in forests, eating leaves. It has a sharp stinger on its head that injects poison,"** Ashley smiled and put the ball inside her handbag. "The last Pokemon we need to find here is Pikachu. It looks like a yellow mouse," "Should be easy," Ashley said. Little did she know how wrong she would be.

They wandered for about a half hour trying to find one. "Easy huh?" Jason sighed. "This is Ludicrous!" Ashley shouted impatiently. Just then, a patch of tall grass rustled behind them and a Pikachu hopped out. Ashley grinned menacingly once she noticed it. "Go, Weedle!" She suddenly cried throwing its ball. It appeared in front of her ready to attack. The Pikachu's attention was drawn and it turned to face its opponent.

"Weedle, use poison sting!" Weedle inched forward to stick Pikachu with its barb but the quicker mouse zapped the bug with a weaker electric attack. Not to be deterred, the bug continued to inch forward and it jumped on Pikachu with its barb. Pikachu cried in pain and whipped the bug away with its tail. Pikachu began to retreat back into the tall grass.

"You're not going to get away!" Ashley shouted. She took an empty ball and tossed as hard as she could at the fleeing Pokemon. It was a direct hit and it opened up to suck Pikachu inside. She watched intently as the ball wiggled back and forth. After the fifth time wiggling, the ball finally clicked and echoed to confirm that the Pikachu was captured. "YEAH! Finally!" Ashley exclaimed rushing over to pick up her new capture. **"Pikachu: the mouse Pokemon. It has small electric sacs on both its cheeks. If threatened, it looses electric charges from the sacs,"**

After her Pokedex finished talking, her Weedle started to spit string on itself. "What's happening?" She asked after noticing her Pokemon covering itself. "It must be evolving!" Jason said very excited. They watched as it completely covered itself and became a cocoon. It was a yellow color with black eyes.

**"Kakuna: the cocoon Pokemon. This Pokémon is in a temporary stage while making its body. It is almost completely unable to move on its own,"** Ashley was grinning ear to ear. She got three new entries in the Pokedex and two new Pokemon. "Can it get any better!?" She shouted. "SHHHH! We don't want to awaken a swarm of angry-," Before Jason could finish his sentence, a low humming drone could be heard. After turning towards where the sound came from, small dots covered the sky. Jason squinted to see. After making out the creatures as Pokemon, he shouted "RUN!"

Ashley hurriedly withdrew Kakuna and stumbled after Jason as fast as she could but the sky stalkers were catching up to them. "We gotta find the exit to north route 2!" Jason screamed. The Pokemon giving chase were now close enough to identify. They were Beedrill, an average sized bee like Pokemon. They were agitated and needed to vent their anger on the source of the noise that disturbed them: Ashley.

"There it is!" cried Jason when he saw the exit to route 2 north. A few Beedrill were now in range to stab Ashley with their forearm stingers. She noticed this and began to zigzag to dodge there vicious thrusts. "HELP ME!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. Jason reached the door leading out of the forest and opened it and ran inside. Then, he turned around and grabbed the knob to quickly close it once Ashley made it through.

"C"MON YOU CAN MAKE IT!" Jason shouted to Ashley. She began to run faster and soon enough she made through the door. Jason slammed the door on the swarm and a few of the Beedrill crashed into the door with a SLAM! Ashley was panting. "I… am never… going… into there… ever… again…," She barely managed speak through her heavy breathing. "Well… at least we… managed to… get out… alive…," Jason said, also out of breath. They sat down on a bench inside the checkpoint to catch their breath.

"I told you that I promised that we would see the other side of this forest," Jason said. "Yes. Thank you for keeping your promise," Ashley replied. "Well, Pewter City is just a short walk north of here. We should go soon," Jason said. Once they finished catching their breath, they left the checkpoint and headed for Pewter City.


	8. Chapter 7: A Taste of the Trainer's Life

Chapter 7: A Taste of the Trainer's Life

It took Jason and Ashley only five minutes to reach Pewter City after they departed from the checkpoint. "Ah! We finally made it!" Jason said aloud. "Yeah that's good. We should find a Pokemon center first," Ashley replied. They began to ask citizens about the location of the Pokemon center. Eventually, they saw it after following the instructions they got from a local bug catcher.

"Welcome to the Pewter City Pokemon center! I am Nurse Joy and I will gladly service your Pokemon," "Huh? You mean your Nurse Joy also?" Jason asked dumbfounded. "Yes. We nurses at the Pokemon centers are all named Joy. We all look identical too. Now, can I help you?" "Yes. Both our Pokemon need to be refreshed," Ashley said dispelling her confusion. "No problem! This will only take a second," the nurse told them. She took Ashley's and Jason's poke balls and put them into two identical machines. After some mechanical sounds, Joy took them out of the machines and handed them back to the trainers. "Have a nice day!" she said bowing. "That was quick," Jason said. They left and sat down on a bench outside.

"Now, I need you to transfer the data of Weedle, Kakuna, and Pikachu over to me," Jason said. "Sure," Ashley replied. **"Transfer Complete,"** could be heard to confirm it was a success. "I found that we can set the Pokedex to automatically transfer data to the other. If we both set ours to be like this, we won't have to ever touch them again I think…," Ashley said. "That's convenient!" Jason said turning on "Auto-stream" In his Pokedex's settings. "You wanna sight see?" Ashley asked Jason. "Why not? It is part of the joy of traveling,"

They walked around and saw many pretty flower patches and the Pewter City Museum of Science. "Let's go there!" Jason cried immediately when he saw the building. "I'm not a huge fan of science though…" Ashley said in a slightly whiny tone. "Ah, c'mon! I'll pay for your ticket! They only cost 50 poke dollars each!" "Oh, alright. Just for you, I'll go along." Ashley complied. They entered the front door and Jason paid 100 poke dollars for their tickets and they were admitted inside.

Jason was in a poke maniac's heaven. There were fossils of ancient Pokemon on display on the first floor and a space exhibit on the second floor. Ashley just patently followed him around. After spending about an hour and a half there, Jason finished looking around and they left. When they walked out the door, Ashley noticed that there was a back door and it was wide open.

"I wanna check THAT out," Ashley said to Jason. "Be right back!" she said running of and hopping the short fence that surrounded the museum. "WAIT!" Jason called out to her but it was no use. Now he was praying she wouldn't get in trouble. She emerged from the back door about three minutes later with an amber chunk in her hand. "DID YOU STEAL THAT?!" Jason frantically asked her. "Chillax, boy. An employee gave it to me. He thinks that there might actually be some Pokemon DNA in this thing. He said he wanted me to take it to a lab and have it examined. If what he said was true, we should be able to revive a Pokemon from this thing," "Cool. Are you willing to part with it by any chance?" Jason hopefully asked her. "Yeah I don't really care about this thing," she said tossing it to Jason. He caught it and put it in his bag. "We gotta find this city's gym!" Jason said. "Right behind you," Ashley said and began to follow him.

The gym was only a few blocks away from the museum. They stood in front of it for a moment admiring its size. Jason noticed a sign next to the gym. "Pewter City Pokemon gym. Leader: Brock," he turned to Ashley. "That's what the sign says. Well, I am feeling pretty confident. I'm gonna take this guy on!" Jason said and began to march into the gym. Ashley silently followed him. Jason stopped at the door and pulled it open for Ashley. "Thank-you," She said nodding at him and he followed behind her.

Inside it was dirty. There were rocks all over the room. The only two people in sight were a trainer and Brock. The trainer noticed Jason and walked up to him to battle. "Not so fast! You're ten thousand light years from facing Brock! You have to battle me if you want to see him! Go, Sandshrew!" A mouse-like creature with a brick pattern on its body appeared.

"OK! Go, Rattata!" Jason shouted throwing its ball. Once it appeared Jason shouted "Use, hyper fang!" It ran up to the Sandshrew and bit into it powerfully. "Use rapid spin to free yourself!" The opponent commanded. Sandshrew tucked itself into a ball and began to whirl round and round until Rattata was dizzy and thrown off. It smashed into a nearby boulder doing severe damage. Rattata struggled to stand up again. After a tense moment of waiting for it to regain its composure, the enemy trainer ordered his Sandshrew to scratch Rattata. It rushed up to the rodent barring its claws but Jason did some fast thinking and commanded his Rattata to use quick attack.

In an instant, Rattata dashed headfirst into the opponent and sent it flying back. It hit the ground and fainted. The battle was over. "Oh, that's right… A light year is distance, not time. No matter! Brock won't lose to a chump like you!" The trainer said and gave Jason a small amount of prize money. Despite his comments, Jason marched up to Brock with Ashley following close behind.

Brock was standing erectly. There was something odd about the way he looked at them. They could feel him boring into their heads with his stare even though his eyes appeared to be closed. "Good to see you have made it this far. I am Brock, the leader of this gym and the distributor of the Boulder Badge. I admire you're determination but I can see the worry in you. The kind of worry that says: 'I'm not sure if I have the right advantage.' My Pokemon and I have true-grit trust in each other. Our bond is as solid as rock. That's right, my Pokemon are all the rock type! I gladly accept your challenge and I will not lose! Go, Onix!

Brock threw a poke ball and what appeared made Jason doubt himself. Onix, the Pokemon Brock sent out, was GIANT! It nearly reached the roof of the gym and was completely made of hard-looking rocks. Jason gulped and took out Charmander's poke ball. "Go Charmander!" He shouted. Charmander appeared and stared at the monster in front of him. Then, it turned around and looked at Jason with an expression saying: "you're kidding right?"

"Charmander, use ember!" It reluctantly turned around and spat small fireballs at the Onix. Onix did not budge. "Onix, use bind!" The snake slithered over to Charmander and wrapped itself around Charmander. It then coiled its body around and crushed Charmander inside. "Charmander!" Jason shouted full of worry for his companion. _"I can't let this go on… I wasn't prepared for this… I have no type advantages… But I can't forfeit just yet,"_ Jason thought to himself. _"However, If Onix doesn't free my Charmander soon; it will be more than just hurt… It will…"_ Jason shuddered at the thought and tried to focus on rescuing his Pokemon. "C'mon Charmander, I know you can free yourself!" Just as Jason shouted those words, Onix adjusted itself and freed Charmander, only to coil its tail around Charmander, pick it up, and hurl it to the floor.

Ashley covered her eyes and turned away. It was too sickening for her to see Charmander so brutally hurt. Charmander lay quivering in pain on the rock floor of the gym. "Alright Onix, finish it with rock tomb!" Onix roared and smashed its tail into the ground. A large rock piece broke from the floor. It swished its tail and lobed the rock in Charmander's direction. Before Charmander could pick himself up from the floor, the rock crushed Charmander. As the dust settled, Jason could see Charmander lying under the rock.

"Oh No!" Jason screamed as he rushed over to the boulder and rolled it off of Charmander. He dropped to his knees and picked up Charmander and cradled him like a baby. Jason's tears were dripping from his face and gently splashing on Charmander. "I… I… I forfeit…" Jason struggled to say through his tears. He sniffled and ran out of the gym with Charmander still in his arms. Ashley chased after him. Brock stood silently and withdrew Onix.

Once Jason was outside, he fell to the ground and set Charmander on the pavement. He looked to the heavens and outstretched his arms and began to question why this happened to him. "Why?! Why so early?! Why did he have to go?!" He shouted. Ashley came up behind him and began to frantically speak to him. "Jason! Hurry up! Take him to Pokemon center before it is too late to do anything for him!" Jason snapped out of his emotional trance and realized that Charmander was not dead but fainted rather. However, if they did not hurry, Charmander could very well die from the severity of its wounds.

Jason quickly scooped Charmander back up and dashed him over to the Pewter City Pokemon center. They burst in through the front door and went straight to the emergency counter. "My Charmander has been seriously injured Nurse Joy! Please, can you have him looked at immediately?!" "Yes," she said taking Charmander from him. A Chansey, a round, pink Pokemon that is used as an aid to the nurses, rushed over to the nurse with a stretcher. Nurse Joy placed Charmander on the stretcher and the Chansey disappeared with it into the emergency ward.

Jason and Ashley walked over to some seats in the waiting room. They both sat down. Jason was silently staring at the floor with a worried expression. Ashley was watching him. She took one of her hands and began to soothingly rub Jason's back as he was hunched over. "Charmander will be okay. The nurses would never let a Pokemon die," she cooed to Jason trying to calm him down. Jason lay back in his seat. He was feeling drowsy after a long day of activity. He closed his eyes and rested his head in Ashley's lap. At first she was a little surprised but she knew this was going to be a long wait and she should let him rest. She smiled down at him and reached over to a nearby shelf and pulled a magazine off of it. She opened it and began to read it.

After about an hour of reading, she closed the magazine and put it back on the shelf. She was feeling tired herself. Soon, she fell asleep with Jason still resting on her lap. She did not know how long she slept but she woke up and looked out a window. She saw the sun was beginning to set. Jason was still peacefully sleeping in her lap. A small amount of time passed before he awoke. He slowly raised his head and picked up his body. He rubbed his eyes and stretched before sitting up back in his seat.

When he was finally sitting up, a nurse opened the door to the emergency ward and she had Charmander standing next to her. Charmander waddled over to Jason. He appeared just as healthy as when he was first taken out of his poke ball. Jason smiled and took out his poke ball. He withdrew Charmander and stood up to thank the nurse and the Chansey. Ashley stood up to follow him out the door.


	9. Chapter 8: The Negotiation

Chapter 8: The Negotiation

Jason breathed a sigh of relief. "See what I'm saying?" Ashley asked him. "They would never let a Pokemon die," "Yeah," Jason said. "Well, we should get some dinner," Ashley said to Jason. "What did you have in mind?" Jason asked. "Nothing in particular," she replied. They wandered around the city and eventually found a small local joint. "I hope this place is not too expensive," Jason said. They looked at the menu before entering. Everything was more expensive than fast food but they were a good deal for a sit down restaurant.

"How is this?" Ashley asked Jason. "Yeah this place is good," They entered and noticed that they were the only ones there aside from two people working behind a counter: A middle aged man and a young girl who appeared to only be about 17 or 18. "Hello," The man greeted them. "Not too many people come here after the dinner hour. Go ahead. Sit anywhere you wish,"

They walked over to a booth and sat down. The young girl stepped out from behind the counter and walked over to their seats. "Hello how are you doing today? May I start you with something to drink?" "I'll simply have water," Ashley told the waitress. "Me too," Jason said. "OK, I will be back with your drinks," she said winking and trotting back behind the counter. Jason sat back in his seat and stared at the ceiling. He took note of the country song playing softly in the background.

"What kind of music do you like?" Jason suddenly asked, turning his attention to Ashley. "Hm? I like a variety of genres. Pop and dance are some of my favorites but I like rock and metal too," "You like rock?" "Yeah. Country is not a favorite of mine but I HATE dubstep," "You hate dubstep too?" "Yeah, it's awful. I am not a fan of many modern pop artists either," "I thought I was the only one!" "Wow… I thought I had strange tastes. I am so glad to know that there are others that like what I like," Ashley said.

The waitress came back with the water. "OK, here are your beverages," "Thank-you," Ashley and Jason said in unison. "Have you decided what you want to eat yet?" "Yes," they both told her what they wanted and she retreated back to the other side of the counter. Jason was looking around admiring the various items hanging along the walls of the diner. His gaze soon returned to the table and he began to watch Ashley for a bit. She was tracing her finger around the edges of the top of her water glass. She noticed him staring at her. "What?" she asked. "Oh, nothing," Jason said turning away from her a little embarrassed. He grabbed his glass of water and sipped from it to reassure himself. Just then, the waitress revisited the table with their food. She put it on the table and stood for a moment so she could see them try the food.

"Mm, this delicious!" Jason said. "I'm glad you like what I made you," "You are also the cook?" "Yes. Most of the workers leave after the dinner rush because nobody visits after that time. Because the old man is the manager, I have to take orders and cook the food after the dinner rush. Do you mind if I sit and chat with you?" "Not at all," Ashley said. "Thank-you," she said pulling a chair from a table next to them and sitting down in it. "By the way, I'm Courtney," "Nice to meet you Courtney," "So has anything interesting happened to you two today?" Courtney asked twirling a lock of her strawberry blond hair. "I challenged Brock and I-," "Lost," Courtney interrupted. "How did you know?" Jason asked. "It is totally written on your face. I know the kind of look people have when they lose to a gym leader. Don't beat yourself up over it though, MANY people struggle to defeat Brock," "Why?" Ashley questioned. "Because of the type he uses, rock. Rock type Pokemon have a big type advantage over almost all of the Pokemon that can be found on Routes 1 and 2. Many trainers' Pokemon are also generally weaker than Brock's because the Pokemon found around here are weak and many don't train hard enough. No matter how you look at it, Brock's gym is a very rude awakening for all trainers," "How do you know all this?" they asked the waitress. "Because I'm friends with one of his sisters,"

They both stopped chewing on their food to absorb her last statement. Once reality came back to Jason, he asked her how old she was. "17." she said. Jason's prediction of her age was correct. "Well, if you know so much about Brock, can you tell me any chance I might have at beating him?" "Well," she sighed, "If you did not receive Bulbasaur or Squirtle from Professor Oak, or capture a Mankey on Route 22, you can't really hold your own in a straightforward fight with Brock," "Shoot. I do not meet either of those requirements. I have no Mankey and I picked Charmander," "Oh… That stinks… But, there is one thing I could try to do for you," "What is that?" "There is a type called steel type. Steel type moves are super-effective against rock type Pokemon. I can teach the steel type attack, metal claw, to your Charmander if you wish," "That is fantastic!" Jason exclaimed. "However, I need something from you in return," She said. Jason thought he heard a hint of a seductive tone in her voice. Jason squinted.

"How much money you want from me?" he asked. "None. Just come to service door behind the restaurant an hour before opening time. You can learn of the cost there. If you comply, I will teach your Charmander the attack," "Hey, you better not be thinking about hurting him!" Ashley piped up from across the table. "Oh don't worry dear, I have no intention of harming him," "Good, I care about him a lot," "Really? He deserves better than you," she said grabbing to Jason's arm and pulling herself close to him. She smirked tauntingly at her. Jason stiffened with shock and began to dart his eyes back and forth hoping Ashley's response to this was not going to be explosive like the incident with Gary.

Ashley sat with her mouth open for a bit before responding with: "I don't love him. We are just traveling together so we can help each other in times of need; like friends," "Is that so? Then you wouldn't mind if I did this?" She gently placed her lips on Jason's cheek and gave him an extensive kiss. Courtney couldn't see the anger in Ashley's eyes but Jason could. He could see that she was seething. He was scared that Ashley would jump across the table and beat Courtney to a pulp. _"She is being totally obnoxious! How can I resist not killing her right here and now?!"_ Ashley furiously thought to herself.

When Courtney began to quietly moan, Ashley picked herself up and said "OK Jason, we have far overstayed our welcome wouldn't you agree?" "Yes ma'am!" Jason said quickly tearing himself from Courtney's grip and standing up. They both dropped the cost of the food on the table and Ashley took off for the door. However Jason stayed behind to tip her. "Are you nuts?!" Ashley called to him. "She was still a good waitress. She deserves a tip for that," said Jason as he pulled a little extra money from his wallet.

After he placed the tip on the table, he ran for the door much like Ashley did. "See you tomorrow cutie!" Courtney called out to Jason as he ran out the door.

Once they were outside, Ashley immediately began to chastise Courtney. "What a crazy bitch! She is lucky I didn't decide to rip her head off! All I wanted was a decent meal with you and she practically ruins it!" "Well, at least she sounded sincere about helping me best Brock," "You aren't actually thinking about getting help from that bimbo are you?!" "It is the only chance I have at defeating Brock. I don't want to really get comfortable with her but I need all the help I can get," "Humph!" Ashley snorted and turned away from Jason.

"We need to find a place to stay for the night," Jason said. "Oh, yeah," Ashley responded, returning to reality. "A nice motel is just a few blocks away from here. We could get a room with two beds and a bathroom," "That's nice but… Can we get a room with one big bed?" "Oh, so you like sleeping next to me?" "Yeah," She replied blushing. "You're just so warm and comforting," "I understand," Jason said. They walked through the night to the motel. When they entered the front door, the night clerk put down his magazine and greeted them.

"Howdy! How can I help you?" "We need a room for the night. One large bed and a bathroom will do," "Sure thing kid but… don't you think you kids are a bit young to be doing this stuff?" "Huh? No it is nothing like that! It is just a better deal!" "Ooook, here are your keys. You will be staying in room 39," He handed Jason the keys. "Thank-you sir," They headed down the narrow corridor. They passed all the rooms but never saw 39. "It must be on the second floor," Ashley said. They searched for the stairway and soon found it. A sign next to the stairs said rooms 30-40 were on the second floor. They found their room and Jason unlocked the door.

"After you," Jason said holding it for Ashley. She entered the dark room and turned on the lights once the door was closed. The lights revealed the room to be clean. The walls were a faint green color. A drab olive carpet covered the floor. The bed was a queen size made with a light sheet and blanket. The two lights that lit the room gave off a soft white light. There was a window that looked out to the parking lot of the motel. The drapes were a slightly darker shade of green than the walls. There was a relatively short chest of drawers across from the bed. There was a small flat-screen TV sitting on it. The door to the bathroom was right next to the door that led back outside the room. The bathroom walls were white with a tile floor. Inside the bathroom was a sink on a granite counter, a high toilet, several hooks with towels on them and a relatively large tub for bathing.

"This is pretty nice for a motel," Ashley said. "Well, I need to shower. No peeking on me!" "Why would I do that?" Jason asked. "Oh, please! I remember your face when you saw me in my nightgown back in the forest!" "Oh, that…," Jason said beginning to turn red. "I won't take long!" She said winking and stepping into the bathroom closing the door behind her.

Jason stripped down to his underwear, put his backpack by the chest of drawers, and grabbed the remote for the TV. He flopped on the bed and turned on the TV. He cycled through the channels until he found a cartoon station. He stopped to watch for a moment. He smiled at childish slapstick humor. _"It has been so long,"_ Jason thought to himself while watching. After watching a series of cartoon shorts, he realized that Ashley was taking a long time despite her promise. _"I need to brush my teeth anyway. I don't think she will mind if I just went in to brush,"_ Jason got off the bed and took his toothbrush and toothpaste out of his bag. He silently went into the bathroom so he could take care of business. When he stepped inside, the sound of the running shower, the heat of the steam, and the smell of girly scents immediately met him.

While Jason stumbled over to the sink counter, Ashley noticed the shadow rolling across the curtain. She stopped rinsing herself for a moment to see who was there. She was a little freaked out when she noticed the weapon-like object in the shadow's hand. She quickly peeked from behind the curtain and saw it was only Jason.

"Damn it, Jason! Don't do stuff like that! Please warn me next time," she said and returned to her shower. While Jason was brushing, Ashley shut off the water. Her arm poked out from behind the curtain and grabbed a towel. It disappeared behind the curtain. After a few moments, the curtain was opened and Ashley stepped out, concealed by the towel. Her dainty feet carried her over to the counter. She pulled the hair dryer attached to the wall and turned it on to dry her hair.

Jason spat out a white liquid with tiny chunks from dinner into the sink. Jason rinsed his mouth, stepped into the shower, took off his underwear, and turned on the water. Once again, the room grew humid. He finished much faster than Ashley. When he turned off the water, he peeked out to see Ashley still in the bathroom but she was now combing her long brown hair. He felt for his towel and dried himself. He stepped out once he was concealed. "I am going to get dressed outside," he said and stepped straight out of the bathroom.

He went over to his backpack and put on fresh underwear once he pulled it out. Ashley opened the door a crack just as he was finished putting on his underwear. "Are you done?" She asked. "Yeah, you can come out," Jason replied. She stepped out wearing her nightgown. Jason walked over to the window and noticed the rain outside was getting stronger. He could also hear thunder in the distance. He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. It read 10:40.

"Good thing my Growlithe isn't out of its ball. He would be barking at the thunder like crazy," Ashley stepped over to the bed and gently lay down on it. Jason turned around and crawled into the bed too. They lay next to each other, staring at the ceiling for a moment. The only sound was the rain beating against the window and the far away thunder. "You tired?" Ashley asked Jason. "No," "Wanna watch TV?" "Sure,"

Jason handed Ashley the remote and she turned it on. They sat back as she cycled through all of the channels. "Hmm… I don't want to watch any of this," She said turning off the TV. "We should try to sleep" Jason said getting up to turn off the lights. As soon as he did, he got back in the bed and adjusted himself. "Good-night Ashley," He said yawning.

The room was pitch-black without the lights. Outside, the rain and thunder persisted. Jason lay silently looking in Ashley's direction. He could hear her breathing softly. After a clap of thunder, a white flash of lightning briefly illuminated the room. It revealed Ashley to be awake looking directly into Jason's eyes. Jason reached out and took hold of her hand. In response, she scooted closer to Jason and snuggled next to him. She felt the warmth of his body on hers. She was very comfortable next to him, and soon, she fell asleep. Jason was also at ease with her next to him. He let the sounds of the storm outside lull him to sleep.


	10. Chapter 9: The Meeting

Chapter 9: The Meeting

Jason awoke in bed. He glanced at the clock in the room. He could barely read it, but it said 5:10 AM. He instantly remembered that he had to go back to restaurant so he could meet with Courtney. He grunted and scooted out of bed slowly so that Ashley would not be disturbed. He put on all of his clothes, strapped on his backpack, and opened the door to the outside corridor. He grabbed the key off the hook next to the door and stepped out.

He entered the lobby and found the clerk from the day before asleep and snoring with his mouth wide open. His chair was leaned all the way back against the wall. It was still dark outside. The streetlights and the tint on the window cast the room in an eerie yellow-green color. Jason opened the door to leave and a gust of wind met him. Apparently, it was windy outside, but the rain had ceased. Still the whole area was the same color as the lobby. It was like something out of a horror movie. Jason made his walked through the dank, windy night.

He arrived at the back alley of the restaurant right on time. "Hey there cutie," A voice said from the shadows. Jason turned to face the voice. Courtney stepped out with a look just as seductive on her face. She was wearing tight plain jeans and a tight, revealing, long sleeve V-neck. "I knew you couldn't resist me," she said slowly. "No," Jason firmly said. "I am only here to learn the attack, pay you, and get the hell out of here," "Fine. You can be dense, but paying me comes first, boy," Jason grimaced. "Fine. What do you have in mind?"

She answered in action rather than words. She lunged at Jason and pressed him against the back wall. Then, she forcibly began to smother Jason with kisses before going for his lips. As much as Jason wanted to pry himself away, he knew he had to cooperate because if he didn't, no reward.

It soon ended when Courtney's advances became more intense. "You gotta stop," He said. "Ashley would rip all my limbs off if she found out," "Oh, that bitch's got nothing on me or you," "Fuck you!" Jason suddenly exploded. "How dare you call someone as incredible as Ashley a bitch! You're the crazy bimbo trying to sell a Pokemon attack to me for your personal pleasure! I only met you about 8 hours ago! You had you're fun, now teach my Charmander metal claw like you promised!" "Fine, be a dick about it," Jason reached into his backpack. "OK," Courtney said receiving the ball containing Charmander. "Now go away for a minute. I need concentration," she said turning and tossing her hair.

Jason waited about ten minutes before she returned with Charmander's ball. "Here, I got a job to do," she said disgustedly stepping into the restaurant so she could help open it for the day. Jason put the ball in his bag and journeyed back to the motel. He opened the lobby door to find the same clerk working at the desk still. He waved hello to him and continued to his room.

He unlocked the door once he arrived. He hoped Ashley was still asleep. She was still lying peacefully in the bed like a young angel. Jason quietly walked over to the bed and sat down on it. Almost subconsciously, he placed his hand on Ashley smooth shoulder. She was truly beautiful. Jason couldn't help but smile. He continued to sit on the bed stroking her arm gently, before he stopped. He stood up and walked over to the window. He gazed out toward the direction of the gym. He sighed at the clouds still covering the sky.

He loved this weather but it would be nice to have a little sun to improve his mood. Just then, Ashley began to stir. She yawned and stretched out her arms. Jason turned to face her. She sat up and began to rub the sleep out of her eyes. "What time is it?" she groggily asked. "About 6:45," Jason answered. Ashley simply nodded in response and kicked herself out of bed. She scooped up her bag and entered the bathroom. Jason assumed she was just putting on her regular clothes and doing whatever girls do to look presentable in the morning. He continued to look outside the window.

He knew that he had better chances against Brock now, but the rest of his Pokemon would still struggle in a fight against any of the leader's Pokemon. He planned to do some training to fill in the time he had to wait to challenge the gym. After all, it was not courteous to challenge a leader so early in the morning. Other thoughts began to rush through his head. After a long moment of him thinking in silence, the bathroom door opened and Ashley stepped out wearing her clothes from the day before.

"How did you sleep?" Ashley asked Jason. "Not the best. My mind is locked in a state of worry and apprehension," "Oh, that's too bad. I slept great! The bed was so comfy for a motel room!" "Well I'm glad you're OK. You're not the one with a challenge ahead of himself. I was hoping that we could go do some training out on route 2 so I can make my Pokemon stronger overall," "Sure. I'll come along,"

They were looking around for Pokemon Jason could fight. They saw many good candidates. Pidgey, Rattata, Caterpie, and Weedle were all accessible. He took notice of a Weedle giving him a suspicious look. He decided that his Caterpie would be a good match for the enemy. He threw it out of its ball and a battle ensued. In the end, Jason was victorious. Then he noticed his Caterpie begin to cover itself with its silk. It was slowly changing shape as it was doing so. After it was done, Caterpie was no longer there, but instead, a green football like cocoon.

"**Metapod: the cocoon Pokemon.** Even though it is encased in a sturdy shell, the body inside is tender. It can't withstand a harsh attack," "Alright! Caterpie evolved!" Ashley continued to watch as Jason plowed through many more Pokemon before he finally said: "Ok, I think Brock's going down,"


	11. Chapter 10: Rematch for the Badge

Chapter 10: Rematch for the Boulder Badge

Jason rushed up to the doors and threw them open with both hands. "I'm back!" he exclaimed. "Now where is Brock? Me and my Pokemon have a score to settle with him!" Brock stepped out from the shadows. "Funny, I thought I sent you packing," "You can't keep me from my goals! I want a rematch!" "I hope you learned some new techniques, otherwise I already know the outcome of this fight! Go Geodude!" He shouted throwing a poke ball. A rock with a face and arms appeared in front of him, levitating.

Ashley stepped off the battlefield to the bleachers in the gym to safely watch the action and cheer Jason on, however she grew a sense of doubt when he learned of the Pokemon Jason was sending out. "Go Metapod!" Jason cried as he threw its ball. Metapod materialized in front of him. "Use Harden!" Metapod stiffened itself, and then began to grow a harder coat. "Geodude, use tackle!" Geodude quickly levitated itself over to Metapod, and slammed into it as hard as it could. Metapod was not fazed. "Harden again!" Jason ordered. "Geodude, use rock throw!" Geodude picked up some small stones and hurled them at Metapod. Each of the rocks shattered as they hit.

_"I see!"_ Ashley thought to herself! _"Jason is using harden to avoid being knocked out and to tire Geodude at the same time!"_ "Metapod, string shot now!" From a small hole in the front of the cocoon, a stream of a thread-like, sticky, white substance spouted out and landed all over Geodude. It began to use its arms to pull off the string. "Enough playing around. Use rock tomb!" Brock ordered Geodude. After cleaning itself of the string, Geodude smashed the floor with immense power. It created two smaller boulders. It picked up one in each hand and lobed them towards Metapod. Metapod was crushed underneath.

After the rocks rolled off, Jason discovered Metapod beneath them lying on the ground sideways, its cocoon body cracked down the back. Jason began to think the worst but the crack in the Pokemon's body began to glow. The crack split open and after a few seconds of sustained glowing, a beautiful, big, butterfly emerged from the cocoon.

**"Butterfree: the butterfly Pokemon. The wings are protected by a rain-repellent dust. As a result, this Pokemon can fly about even in rain,"** "Yeah! You go Jason!" Ashley said from the bleachers. "OK buddy, use confusion!" Jason ordered. Butterfree began to glow a faint purple shade and somehow, Geodude took a heavy hit and became disoriented. "Oh no! Geodude use rock tomb!" Geodude repeated the attack from before, but when it threw the rocks, they went straight up and landed on top of Geodude. It fainted from the blow. Brock grunted and withdrew his exhausted Pokemon. "Go, Onix!" he shouted throwing the ball containing the beast. "Butterfree, you did great now get back!" Jason said withdrawing Butterfree. He sent out Charmander in its place

"Do you learn from your defeats?" Brock asked. "Use metal claw!" Jason shouted. "Use rage!" Brock said at the same time. Charmander was quicker to take action. It lunged forward with its sharp claws barred and slashed at the Onix's body. Several pieces of the snake's hard body chipped and it roared in pain. To retaliate against the smaller opponent, it charged at Charmander. Charmander leaped out of the way and landed on the head of the behemoth. Before it realized what happened, Charmander dug its claws into the head of the Onix and slashed with all its might. Onix slowly stopped moving. Jason and Ashley held their breath. Could Jason have finally won? Brock rushed to check his fallen Pokemon.

"It's over," he said and withdrew Onix. "Really!? I won? YES!" Jason screamed, jumping for joy. Ashley ran up to him from the bleachers to congratulate him and Jason scooped her up in a wild hug. Then, he put her down after he realized that it was little embarrassing. Jason sat down and picked up Charmander. Being carful of its tail flame, he gave it a hug and a few pats on the head. Then, Charmander began to glow in the most amazing light. Slowly, it changed shape and when the glow wore of, the creature left standing was bigger, meaner and red in color.

**"Charmeleon: the flame Pokemon. It lashes about with its tail to knock down its foe. It then tears up the fallen opponent with sharp claws,"** Jason withdrew his newly evolved Pokemon "I think you made a great decision in choosing your first Pokemon," Brock said. "I took you for a foolish child and so, I lost. I must confer the Boulder Badge to you," Brock fished a small badge from his pockets. It was gray and looked like a tiny octagonal stone.

Jason stuck it inside his badge case that he took with him from home. "You fight with strategy, determination, passion, and honor," Brock said to him. "I know that you will make it far in your journey because of those qualities," "Thank you sir," said Jason bowing before Brock. "Before you leave, take this," he said handing Jason a brown disc. "It may look like a disc, but it is called a TM or technical machine. You use them to teach Pokemon powerful and elusive techniques. The one I just gave you contains rock tomb. It is intended for use on rock Pokemon. TMs can be used ONLY ONCE. I do not give these out often, but you fought brilliantly so I believe you deserve it. I think the other gym leaders are like this too. Put up an interesting or good fight, and they might decide to let you have their favorite TM. Well, we are done here. Maybe we can fight again… Someday," He watched them leave through the gym doors and waved just as they were fading out of sight.


	12. Chapter 11: Up to no Good

Chapter 11: Up to no Good

Jason and Ashley made a pit stop at the Pokemon center before heading east for route 3. "Can you believe it?" Jason asked. "I got my first badge! This only the first of many Ashley. I know we can make it together!" Ashley nodded in response.

The terrain of route 3 was very different from routes 1 and 2. It had some grass on or around the path, but the path was mostly dirt. There were also mountain ranges surrounding the route. Small boulders were scattered across the area. They continued to traverse the uneven terrain.

They saw many hikers along the way. Some of them stopped to chat and others demanded a battle. They were quickly disposed of by Jason's Charmeleon or Ashley's Bulbasaur. Besides hikers, they saw bug catchers, young girls, and boys. Some of them had interesting things to say.

"I like shorts! They are incredibly comfy and easy to wear! What?! You're not wearing shorts?" said one of the youngsters. "Of course not! It's the beginning of the autumn season!" Jason replied. "I just prefer skirts as a fashion choice. I never really liked the kind of shorts you wear," Ashley replied. They continued on their way. "Well that was a little strange…," Ashley mumbled. "He's still a kid. How can you blame him?" Jason said in turn.

Soon, they crossed the border into route 4. It was a path on an uphill slope. They decided to go through the tall grass on the side of the path. All of a sudden, a small white animal with short whiskers, and a small purple animal with horn ambushed them. They looked strikingly similar.

"I got the purple one," Jason said. "I got the white," Ashley said at the same time. Jason threw out his Rattata and Ashley threw out her Pikachu. "Pikachu, use thunder wave on the white one!" "Rattata, hit the purple one with a Quick attack!" Pikachu shot out a short blast of electricity and scored a direct hit on the white Pokemon. Rattata dashed forward and crashed into the purple Pokemon. Jason noticed something odd about the way Rattata came back however. It seemed to stagger back instead of simply retreating.

The white Pokemon readied to attack. Meanwhile the Purple one ran up to Rattata and kicked with two swift, successive kicks. Rattata tumbled back and lay still on the floor for a moment. It struggled to get back up, but it eventually stood. The white one took aim at Rattata. It reared back and attempted to dash forward but it was locked in place due to Pikachu paralyzing it. "Pikachu, attack with thunder shock!" A quick line of lightning arced over to the white Pokemon and struck with fantastic power. Ashley decided it was a good time to toss a poke ball. She did so, and begun to wait for the confirmation click.

The purple one was extremely confused at the disappearance of its partner. Jason took note of this and quickly tossed a poke ball at the remaining target. Jason and Ashley looked on with anxious expressions on their face. Ashley's catch was soon confirmed to be captured and so was Jason's. Ashley's Pokedex was first to speak. **"Nidoran Female: the poison pin Pokemon.** **Although small, its venomous barbs render this Pokemon dangerous. The female has smaller horns,"** Shortly after, Jason's Pokedex spoke up too. **"Nidoran Male: the poison pin Pokemon. It stiffens its ears to sense danger. The larger its horns, the more powerful its secreted venom,"**

"Cool! A poison type?" Ashley asked. "That's pretty frickin awesome!" Jason replied. After withdrawing their Pokemon, they resumed hiking up the slope. They began to talk about their fascination with their new Pokemon when a sparrow like Pokemon fluttered down to the ground nearby and began to forage around in the grass.

"You see that?" asked Ashley. "Yeah. I know how to get its attention," Jason said back. He found a small stone lying on the ground. He took aim and threw it. It landed behind the bird causing it to turn its head and face the disturbance. "Okay, go for it Rattata!" cried Jason tossing the ball. Rattata appeared on the ground. It was lying on its side, fainted.

"The hell?!" Jason exclaimed in a mixture of worry and confusion. Jason began to frantically think of an explanation for why this happened. Then, a wave of realization hit him. _"Poisoning will slowly damage the Pokemon until it faints,"_ the teacher from Viridian City echoed in his head. _**"The larger its horns, the more powerful its secreted venom,"**_ the voice of his Pokedex replayed in his mind. "Rattata must have hit that Nidoran's horn when I ordered my Rattata to attack. It became poisoned and fainted inside the Poke ball!"

Jason withdrew his fallen friend and sent out Growlithe instead. The opponent began to flutter over. When Growlithe appeared, the bird decided to take a cheap shot and peck it while it was not aware. Growlithe winced, but the attack was not very strong.

"Growlithe, attack with bite!" Jason commanded. The dog ran up to the opponent with its mouth open, ready to bite down on it. It chomped down and began to snarl it up. After a struggle, Growlithe threw the sparrow across the ground. Jason threw a poke ball at the weakened Pokemon. It did not take long for it to be caught. **"Spearow: the tiny bird Pokemon. It busily flits around here and there. Even if it is frail, it can be a tough foe that uses Mirror Move,"** Jason retrieved his catch with Ashley following behind him.

The sun dropped lower in the sky, making it turn many fantastic shades of orange. In the distance, they could see a Pokemon center on the side of the path. They needed to stop there to tune up their team before trekking through the path ahead. They handed the nurse their poke balls and she went in the back room with them. They headed over to the waiting area and sat down by a table near an older man.

Jason took note of the newspaper he was reading. _"Team Rocket Raids Mt. Moon!"_ the headline read. "Excuse me sir," Jason said, trying to get the old man's attention. "Who are Team Rocket?" He asked. "Rocket? They are only the most villainous criminal organization in all of Kanto! They've been around god knows how long and have always been up to the worst kinds of trouble. They invaded Mt. Moon for their own selfish purposes! If I were to guess, their reason for being there is trying to steal as much geological treasures from the mountain as possible, or capture as many rare Pokemon as they can and sell them off for a profit! If only I were in my prime," The old man responded.

A chill ran down Jason's spine. He looked at the date of the article's publication. He realized with horror that it was written only the day before. This meant having to go through the mountain ahead with the strong possibility of running into trouble with the criminals. He mentioned this to Ashley and her reaction was explosive. "If those jerks think they can steal anything from me, they are dead wrong! Thieves and criminals… They don't deserve forgiveness!" she whispered angrily. "Says the girl who stole a piece of amber from the museum," Jason said in response. She giggled. "You jackass," she said playfully punching his arm. "I already told you it was given to me," They were called to the front desk soon after. "Here are your Pokemon!" said the nurse joyfully, giving them back their poke balls. "However, I am afraid I have some bad news," she said suddenly changing her expression. "The young lady's Kakuna went missing when we turned our backs on it for just one second. We did manage to find it, but then we noticed the gaping crack down its back," "You mean my little guy evolved?!" Ashley said becoming exited. "Yes but… We can't find it!" The nurse exclaimed. "I am terribly sorry but if you could just- AHHH!" The nurse shrieked. "What!?" Ashley asked frantically. "B- Behind you!" Ashley and Jason turned around to see a large bee zooming towards them, ready to stab them both with its foreleg stingers.


End file.
